Generosity

If this kind of generous giving continues, Sophia's going to have it made!

Rock Wall

Pictures from our first family picnic with Sophia:

I don't think she appreciated it as much as Caleb did!

Firsts

This week, our family experienced a lot of firsts:

Sophia:
-First time opening her eyes, using her lungs, etc.
-First word (Her first cry seriously sounded like, "Mmaaaa Mmaaa!!!"
-First doctor's appointment (They confirmed, "Yep, she's a healthy newborn. Whew, I wasn't sure what I had for a bit....")
-First church service (As usual, she wanted to help with the prayer time.)
-First time down a slide

Caleb:
-First time climbing the sloped rock wall at the park (I love how excited he gets when he reaches the top.)
-First time sharing toys with his baby sister (I love the tiny seeds of thoughtfulness and generosity growing in his heart.)
-First time waking up to someone else crying

Luke:
-First time carrying two kids at once (This was old hat for Deborah.)

Deborah:
-First time walking to the playground with 2 kids
-First time figuring out what order to put multiple kids in the car and take them out of the car (At this point, I think the most mobile kid goes in first and comes out last.)

Luke's been able to take time away from work this week, which has been wonderful. Next week I'm sure there will be many other firsts when he heads back to work and the kids outnumber me all. day. long.

Baby Product of the Week

The most helpful baby product during the first week of Sophia's life has been the SwaddleMe. While an simple, old-fashioned receiving blanket works (and this is what I use when I'm away from home), the SwaddleMe is easier to use and less prone to breakouts. Basically it's a straight-jacket for babies. At best, it makes Sophia feel secure when she sleeps (as far as I can guess what she's feeling at the moment) . At least, it keeps her from flailing her arms and hitting herself in the face. For us, it means she sleeps better, which helps us sleep better. A winner in my book! Originally our SwaddleMe was a gift from one of my awesome sisters-in-law before Caleb was born. It survived several months of constant use with Caleb and is well on its way to surviving several more months with Sophia.

If you are one of any number of my friends registering for baby items or buying baby gifts in the next few months, consider the SwaddleMe.

Who's Who?

See any family resemblance?

A Birth Story...

...in which all the gory details are omitted.

Something about the “Just Say No” anti-drug campaign has stuck with me from my elementary school days. Whether it’s street drugs or prescription drugs…just don’t make me take them. I’d like to get through life with as little intervention from doctors and medicine as possible. Don’t get me wrong--I’m very thankful for knowledgeable, skilled doctors and for life-saving drugs. I believe they are gifts from God. But in general, I’d prefer not to have a reason to use them.

When Caleb was born, my labor was induced due to being so far past my due date. So as my daughter’s due date approached and passed, I geared myself up to be pumped full of drugs in order to start the labor and delivery process, yet I was not excited about it. Intellectually, I could agree with the logical reasons and statistics for induction. I hadn’t had a bad experience with induction when Caleb was born. (He was definitely worth it!) But emotionally, I could not reconcile myself to the idea of inducing labor. Induction was something I’d do because I had to, not because I wanted to. Therefore, I reluctantly scheduled the induction with my doctor’s office for Wednesday morning.

About the same time, I asked a few good friends to pray. I asked them to pray that God would reign over my emotions and show his goodness and sovereignty through the labor process—however it happened. I also, rather flippantly, asked them to pray that I’d go into labor on my own Tuesday evening.

Around 2:30 am on Tuesday morning, I woke to a few real contractions. Could Tuesday be the day? As the day wore on, I took Caleb to the park, ate Indian food, and took a 2.5 mile walk with Caleb, all halfway hoping to induce labor without drugs. Nothing.

Tuesday evening my mom drove to town, as planned, so she’d be ready to take care of Caleb while we were in the hospital being induced on Wednesday. That evening, Tuesday evening, the evening my friends were praying about, real labor started and continued. Sophia Constance was born the next day…as “planned.”


Because I went into labor on my own Tuesday evening and Sophia was born on Wednesday:
-my mom was already in town, ready to take care of Caleb.
-I trusted the doctor on call.
-I didn't need to be pumped full of drugs all day!
-labor and delivery went very smoothly (and therefore, recovery is going well, too).
-Luke was able to delegate tasks at work before taking time off.
-We were able to see God at work.

God was so very good to us. I know God could have shown me his sovereignty, his power, and his love in any number of ways through Sophia’s birth. But in this instance, I will remember that God heard my prayers. I will remember that God graciously answered my prayers when I am so undeserving of his answer. And I will remember that God wisely and lovingly gives us exactly what we need (and even what we want sometimes).

How have you seen God answer your prayers lately?

Picture Update

Our family of four

enjoying a birthday party for Sophia at the hospital

including cupcakes, made by Caleb and his grandma. (The sprinkles were Caleb's specialty, I hear.)

One Sophia ready to leave the hospital.

One Caleb welcoming us home...or rather, wanting to play with more bubbles. I think he had so much fun with grandma that I don't think he missed us at all.

Grandma and Sophia

Daddy time!

Birth Announcement

We'd like to introduce you to the newest member of our family:

Sophia Constance
born on
Wednesday, April 14th, 2010
a little after 1 pm
weighing 7 lbs 8 oz.
and measuring
20 3/4 inches long.

We are celebrating all the ways God has provided through Sophia's growth, development, and birth. Check out the blog in the upcoming days if you're interested in seeing more pictures or hearing more information.

Dear Miss...

The laundry is done. The kitchen is clean. The freezer is stocked. The bathrooms are clean. Caleb's hair has been cut. The oil has been changed in the car. Could you come introduce yourself before these things need to be done again?

While we wait, we'll continue enjoying the magnolia tree in our backyard, the relative peace and quiet, and the opportunity to go to the park as often as we can. See you soon!

Sincerely, Mom.

Nesting: Sewing Projects

A more recent hobby of mine has been sewing. It's something I can do at home when Caleb is sleeping that also challenges me to learn something new. My mom taught me to sew when I was a kid, meaning I knew how to sew when she was with me. And evidently I remember enough of what my mom taught me that there aren't too many disasters.

Having kids means I have more motivation to try my hand at different sewing projects. But now that I've collected pictures of all these projects, I realize I went a bit overboard with the sewing this winter. Most of the projects either taught me something new or were fairly simple. I don't regret the time I spent, but I am looking forward to a bit of a break. Pictures (of varying quality) follow.

Dinosaur curtains for a certain little boy. When that little boy is around, the curtains come with sound effects.

A crib skirt and matching curtain valance that is a bit more calming than those I made when prego with Caleb.


Also a matching crib rail cover just in case she turns out to woodchuck tendencies like her older brother.

Shorts for Caleb. As I had him try these on, he was so confused. He kept trying to pull the knees down to his ankles as if to say, "Mommy, these pants are way too short!"

A baby outfit. I did not make the sweater. It's actually a gift from my mom who used it for another little baby almost 30 years ago. I gave it new ribbon to spruce it up and added some pants to match.

Burp cloths. Because smelly spit-up "requires" something soft and pretty...

Flannel receiving blanket with crocheted edge. I loved being able to stash Caleb's flannel blanket in the diaper bag and use it for all sorts of things. It's also great for swaddling little babies.

9 month size baby sweater. I started this project because I wanted to knit a baby blanket but I couldn't decide which pattern to use. This is the result.

Baby blanket and matching doll blanket. In lieu of knitting a baby blanket this time round, I tried my hand at quilting. I think that will be the last time....

Baby gifts for others

Nursing cover.

Today's the Day!

I mean... the due date day.

Some insanely low minority of babies are born on their due date, so I'm not holding my breath, but it still is a reason to celebrate! I'm thankful God has given health and relative comfort throughout this pregnancy.

Our family of 4 celebrating with the obligatory belly picture.

After my doctor appointment today, I treated Caleb to his first Blizzard. He's been such a good sport hanging out with me at the doctor's office that I thought it'd be fun to reward him. (I think he knows the doctor's routine as well as I do now... weight, blood pressure, baby's heartbeat, measure the belly.) After overcoming his fear of the cold, he succumbed to the wonders of ice cream, and we left DQ to a chorus of "more more more more more..."

Nesting: Preparing a Sibling

Ok, so by this list, I've been nesting for months now. Maybe I used up the supposed boost of energy that goes with nesting then too. Anyway, here are some ways we've been preparing Caleb for a sibling. Any other suggestions?

• Say the word "baby" a lot.
• Teach him to walk through the grocery store and stay next to Mommy.
• Find things that entertain him in the grocery store...like the stickers from apples and oranges. (When the cashier looks for the produce number, just look on his elbow or knee.)
• Teach him to walk through a parking lot and stay next to Mommy.
• Kick him out of his room, but give him cool dinosaur curtains.
• Teach him to sleep in a bed without bars.
• Say "baby!" whenever you see one.
• Make him walk when he'd rather be carried.
• Teach gentleness. Being gentle with Mommy's big belly is good practice for being gentle with a baby.
• Encourage daddy time.
• Show him lots of pictures of babies (and reinforce the word "baby"). One option is to read Baby Baby by Vicky Ceelen.
• Continue to practice leaving him in safe, secure environments without Mommy.
• Make him go down slides by himself at the playground. (Not that I could fit in the tunnel slide at the moment. It was hard enough last summer!)
• Teach him the "Happy Birthday" song.
• Plan to do special events now that will be more difficult later. (For example, drive to a zoo several hours away only to find it closed for renovations. Spend the day with Grandpa and Grandma instead. Realize he had just as much fun hopping with his grandpa and grandma along the Mississippi as he would have had at the zoo trying to get a sleepy lion to roar.)
• Practice sharing toys at play group. Then continue to teach gentleness, so that when he shares with the babies at play group, he doesn't hit them with the toy.

What am I missing? What else should I be working on in the next few weeks?